Cinema-Femina

Cinema-Femina is a do-it-yourself meetup group that encourages its members to scout out and see films made by and about women. It's all about watching movies, making friends, having lively discussions and, perhaps most importantly, it's about supporting the filmmakers themselves.

Female filmmakers NEED US!

They need us to buy tickets the FIRST WEEK their films hit the theaters. Those numbers will determine whether that filmmaker will ever get a distribution deal again. Sucks, huh?

But here's the deal, they also need us to appreciate these films they've worked so hard to get made for us. We, the audience, are what keeps these women writing scripts, doggedly pursuing funding and sacrificing who-knows-what to get that film made and distributed.

Surprise, surprise! Sexism is alive and well in both Hollywood and the Independent Film industry, and the powers that be think any film with a female protagonist is a "chick flick." Films with male protagonists are … you guessed it … "films". Now, I agree that there are chick flicks AND dick flicks (I like both) but mostly there are just - films about people living their lives. And we need more of them to be about women's lives. The prevailing belief systems of the 'powers that be" is that our lives are simply boring, stupid and, actually unimportant. Unless we are models. With big breasts.

This belief system is insidious and works it's way into the minds of men and women around the world. If the only important lives are men's, then our lives are … expendable. I truly believe that the way women are depicted in film directly influences they way women are treated in the world.

So, let's go to the movies! I often get busy so I've set it up so YOU can suggest a meetup in your area and I can bestow Event Organizer status to you so it becomes your project. I keep it simple and meet everyone in the lobby AFTER a film so we can all go off to a coffee shop to discuss it. Voila!

See you at the movies!

PS. I know about some of this stuff first hand, because I've made a few films, too. Cinema-Femina was an idea I had some years ago when I was president of CinewomenNY - a grass-roots non-profit that helped women make their first films. That organization has since merged with NYWIFT but Cinema-Femina still remains a pet project of mine. A few years ago I created this meetup and we had lots of fun but got busy with my own projects and handed it off to Kerrie … now I'm back and I hope we can use this group as a way to hook up with others to go see brand new films as well as those they may have fallen through the cracks.

Francesca (Founder and Organizer 2009 -2018)

From the new organizer (avra): What she said! (see above). Waited till the last moment, but couldn't bear to see this group dissolve. I believe there is a War on Women and that film is a vital avenue of response. ALL members are urged to suggest not only specific screenings, but also events that touch on any aspect of the ways women are (mis)represented in the media. Hope to see ya at the movies!

On Paving the Way in Hollywood for More Female Directors: Jane Fonda: “We have to shame the studios for being so gender-biased. We have to make sure that they realize they are being gender-biased so that they are self-conscious about it. . . We have to show that movies made by women make money. So we need to go to movie theaters and see them and talk about them and Tweet about them and tell our friends to go. We just have to prove that we can be commercial.”
(https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2015/0...)

If your interest in feminism extends beyond film, please visit our sister site: Radical Feminist Activists.

If you enjoy reading and discussing books w/ a feminist slant, sign up at Feminist Book Club.

For a deeper dive into the works of women, much of it political, please have a look at Reading Women's Work

If you share concerns about the issue of human trafficking, please look at our other affiliated site:
Fight Slavery Now!